Gaming machine and gaming server

ABSTRACT

A gaming machine is for executing character competition in which a plurality of characters compete with each other. The gaming machine comprising a processor specifying and invalidating a loser character which has become a loser in the character competition. A gaming server is connected to the gaming machine and comprises a processor invalidating the loser character when receiving loser information indicating the loser character from the gaming machine.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority fromthe prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2005-295326, filed on Oct. 7,2005; the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a gaming machine capable of executing acompetition game in which a plurality of characters compete with eachother, and a gaming server connected to the gaming machine.

2. Related Background of the Invention

Gaming machines capable of executing games using data recorded on gameitems such as cards or figures have been known. As such gaming machines,there are ones which are capable of executing games using cards(referred to also as trading cards) having portraits of athletes such assoccer or baseball players printed thereon. For example, Japanese PatentApplication Laid-Open No. 2002-301264 discloses a card gaming apparatuswhich is capable of simulating the team play of soccer by displayinggame images according to the combination of a plurality of cards laidout on the play field, and competing with the opposing team.

In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-251075discloses an electronic gaming apparatus which is capable of storingability values of characters such as offensive power, defensive power,and competition scores in an IC which is built in a trading card as thegame item, and executing games by reading the stored data and showingcharacters corresponding to the read-out data.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a gaming machine and agaming server configured so as to allow competition games with a senseof tension by taking in the primary result of the competition games suchas winning or losing.

The present invention provides a gaming machine for executing charactercompetition in which a plurality of characters compete with each other.The gaming machine comprises: a specifying means for specifying a losercharacter which has become a loser in the character competition; and aninvalidation process means for invalidating the loser characterspecified by the specifying means.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a system configuration of the gaming system according to thepresent invention, comprising a plurality of gaming machines.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a plurality of gaming machinesand a card vending machine.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating an overall arrangement of thegaming machine.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the gaming machine mainly illustrating theinternal structure.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary internal structureof an image control circuit.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a shop server.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a gaming server and a databaseserver.

FIG. 8 illustrates (A) a figure management file before the invalidationprocess and (B) a figure management file after the invalidation process.

FIG. 9 illustrates (A) another figure management file after theinvalidation process and (B) a still another figure management fileafter the invalidation process

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the structure of afigure.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of the gameprocess from the start to the end of the game in the gaming machine.

FIG. 12 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of the gamestartup process.

FIG. 13 is a flow chart illustrating a post-process operation procedure.

FIG. 14 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of thecharacter generation process.

FIG. 15 is a sequence chart illustrating an operating sequence executedamong the gaming machine, the shop server and the center server.

FIG. 16 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of thewith-figure game process.

FIG. 17 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure ofwithout-figure game process.

FIG. 18 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of thedisplacement phase process.

FIG. 19 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of thetraveling phase process.

FIG. 20 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of theinvalidation process.

FIG. 21 is diagram illustrating a labyrinth image.

FIG. 22 is diagram illustrating another labyrinth image.

FIG. 23 is diagram illustrating a battle selection image.

FIG. 24 is diagram illustrating a competition image.

FIG. 25 is a flow chart illustrating a post-process operation procedure.

FIG. 26 is a system configuration of the gaming system according to asecond embodiment.

FIG. 27 is a block diagram illustrating an internal structure of thecellular phone composing the gaming system shown in FIG. 26, togetherwith other major components.

FIG. 28 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of theinvalidation process in the second embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below, whereinidentical elements are provided with identical numerals and symbols,with duplicate explanation omitted.

First Embodiment

(Overall Arrangement of Gaming System)

FIG. 1 is a system block diagram of a gaming system 100 comprising aplurality of gaming machines 1, and FIG. 2 is a perspective viewillustrating a plurality of gaming machines 1 and a card vending machine6. The gaming system 100 comprises three shop servers 2 installed in twoamusement shops A and B, namely one for shop A and the other two forshop B; a plurality (eight for the present embodiment) of gamingmachines 1 and card vending machines 6 communicably connected via aprivate line; in-shop routers 7 installed in the amusement shops A andB; and a group of center server group 5 connected to the in-shop routers7, the communication networks 4 a and the Internet 4. In addition, thecenter server group 5 comprises gaming servers 101, 102, and a databaseserver 103, where the database server 103 in the present embodiment isreferred to also as the gaming server of the present invention.

In each of the amusement shops A and B, the shop server 2, the gamingmachines 1, and the card vending machine 6 are connected by privatelines 3 to form an in-shop LAN (Local Area Network), the in-shop LANbeing connected to the Internet 4 via the in-shop router 7.

(Arrangement of Gaming Machine)

The gaming machine 1, being the gaming machine according to the presentinvention, comprises an image display unit for displaying gaming objectimages which indicate gaming objects such as play characters (describedin detail below) which move according to the player's operation, andequipment characters which express equipment items (e.g., bow and arrow,shield, armor) used by the play characters, and is configured such thatthe character is caused to move according to the operation of the playerand use the equipment character. Additionally, the gaming machine 1 isconfigured to execute a game (referred to as “labyrinth competitiongame” hereinafter), wherein each character moves around a labyrinthalong a route selected by the player and competes with characters otherthan itself (that is, operated characters which move according toselection by other players, or non-operated characters which arecontrolled by the gaming machine), competing for treasure items(“jewels” in the present embodiment, described below), with the goal tocollect all the items and defeat the character being the ultimate enemy.In the labyrinth competition game points (referred to as “life” in thepresent embodiment) held by respective characters increase or decreaseaccording to the result of the battle or the progress status of thegame, and the character with no point left becomes the loser in thecharacter competition.

The gaming machine 1 comprises a main display 11 equipped with aliquid-crystal display device, in the front side of the housing 10, asshown in FIG. 3. Additionally, over the main display 11, the gamingmachine 1 has a sub-display 12 likewise equipped with a liquid-crystaldisplay device, and speakers 13L, 13R provided at the right and leftsides thereof for outputting sounds used for staging the game.

The main display 11 is an image display unit and configured to displaygame images (e.g., labyrinth image 160 as shown in FIG. 22) according torespective phases of the game (described in detail below). Thesub-display 12 is configured to display images at particular phases ofthe game (for example, a competition image 180 to be described later).

In addition, the gaming machine 1 has an operation panel 14 under themain display 11, with an authentication unit 15 provided on the leftside of the operation panel 14, whereas on the right side are provided acoin slot 16 for dropping a coin (game medium such as hard currency orgame token) required when playing a game, and a card slot 18 forinserting an ID card 17. An operation unit 19 having operation buttonsor the like is also provided on the operation panel 14.

The authentication unit 15 comprises a mounting portion 15 a secured onthe surface of the operation panel 14, and a read-and-write portion 15b. The mounting portion 15 a has a thick-walled, disk-shaped depressioninside thereof which corresponds to the shape of a base portion 41 of aFIG. 40 (see FIG. 10) described below, whereby the base portion 41 canbe fitted into the depression. The read-and-write portion 15 b, beingthe read-and-write device according to the present invention, isdisposed at the depression of the mounting portion 15 a, and an IC chipreader-writer is built into the read-and-write portion 15 b.Accordingly, the read-and-write portion 15 b is configured to read therecorded information from an IC chip 44, which is built in the baseportion 41 of the FIG. 40 to be fitted into the mounting portion 15 a,by the IC chip reader-writer and configured to write information intothe IC chip 44 by the IC chip reader-writer. Here, the authenticationunit 15 has an LED so as to illuminate light on the FIG. 40 describedbelow during the read operation of the FIG. 40.

Each of the gaming machines 1 composing the gaming system 100 has amachine ID specific to itself. The machine ID includes a server IDspecific to each shop server 2 and an ID specific to each gaming machine1, which is given, for example, such as A01, A02, A03, . . . in the caseof respective gaming machines 1 installed in shop A.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the gaming machine 1 mainly illustratingthe internal structure. The gaming machine 1 comprises a plurality ofcomponents, in the center of which is provided a microcomputer 31.

The microcomputer 31 comprises a main CPU (Central Processing Unit) 32,a RAM (Random Access Memory) 33, and a ROM (Read Only Memory) 34. Themain CPU (processor) 32, which is operated according to a program storedin the ROM 34, receives signals, via an I/O port 39, from respectivecomponents provided on the operation panel 14, while communicatingsignals to and from other components to control the overall movement ofthe gaming machine 1. The RAM 33 stores data and programs (in thepresent embodiment, application data and game data described below) usedwhen the main CPU 32 is operating. The ROM 34 stores control programsexecuted by the main CPU 32 and permanent data.

In addition, the gaming machine 1 includes a random number generator 35,a sampling circuit 36, a clock pulse generating circuit 37, and afrequency divider 38. The random number generator 35 operates accordingto instructions from the main CPU 32 to generate random numbers within acertain range. The sampling circuit 36, following the instructions fromthe main CPU 32, extracts an arbitrary random number from thosegenerated by the random number generator 35, and feeds the extractedrandom number into the main CPU 32. The clock pulse generating circuit37 generates a reference clock for operating the main CPU 32, and thefrequency divider 38 feeds the signal resulted from dividing thereference clock by a constant cycle into the main CPU 32.

Moreover, the gaming machine 1 includes a touch panel 11 a, a coinsensor 16 a, a card reader 18 a, a communication control unit 21, and acommunication processing unit 22, and further includes an image controlcircuit 71 and an audio control circuit 72.

The touch panel 11 a, being the operation device provided so as to coverthe display screen of the main display 11, detects the position wherethe player's finger touched and feeds the position signal correspondingto the detected position into the main CPU 32. The player uses the touchpanel 11 a to perform input operation to determine the movement of thecharacters. For example, the touch panel 11 a, with its rectangulartransparent plate surface having conductive material coated thereon,detects the position where the player's finger touched by applyingvoltage from electrodes disposed on the four corners of the transparentplate and detecting, through the electrodes, slight change of electriccurrent due to the player's finger touch.

The coin sensor 16 a detects a coin dropped from the coin slot 16, andoutputs, to the main CPU 32, a detection signal corresponding to thedetection. The card reader 18 a reads card information, such as playerID, recorded on the ID card 17 inserted into the card slot 18, and feedsthe read-out card information into the main CPU 32.

The communication control unit 21 operates according to the instructionsfrom the main CPU 32, and controls the connection and disconnection ofthe line for communicating with the shop server 2. The communicationprocessing unit 22 operates according to the instructions from thecommunication control unit 21, and transmits and receives data via theprivate line 3.

The image control circuit 71 controls the display of images on both themain display 11 and the sub-display 12 to display a variety of imagessuch as those showing the characters on the main display 11 and thesub-display 12.

The image control circuit 71 includes an image control CPU 71 a, a workRAM 71 b, a program ROM 71 c, an image ROM 71 d, a video RAM 71 e, and aVDP (Video Display Processor) 71 f, as shown in FIG. 5. The imagecontrol CPU 71 a determines, based on parameters set by themicrocomputer 31, the images to be displayed on the main display 11 andthe sub-display 12 in accordance with the image control program (relatedto the display on the main display 11 and the sub-display 12) which ispreliminarily stored in the program ROM 71 c. The work RAM 71 b isconfigured as a temporary storage device when the image control CPU 71 aexecutes the image control program.

The program ROM 71 c stores the image control program, various selectiontables and the like. The image ROM 71 d stores dot data used to formimages. The video RAM 71 e is arranged as a temporary storage devicewhen forming an image by the VDP 71 f. The VDP 71 f, having a controlRAM 71 g, forms images according to the content of the display by themain display 11 and the sub-display 12 determined by the image controlCPU 71 a, and outputs each of the formed images to the main display 11and the sub-display 12.

The audio control circuit 72 inputs audio signal for outputting soundinto the speakers 13L and 13R. From the speakers 13L and 13R, sound isoutput in order to enhance the excitement of the game at a suitabletiming after the game started, for example.

(Arrangement of Shop Server, Card Vending Machine, and In-Shop Router)

The shop server 2 includes a CPU 201, a ROM 202, a RAM 203, acommunication processing unit 204, a communication control unit 205, anda data storage unit 206 for storing application data, as shown in FIG.6. While the CPU 201 operates to read and write data from and to the RAM203 according to the program stored in the ROM 202, the communicationcontrol unit 205 activates the communication processing unit 204,following the instructions from the CPU 201. Then, via the private lines3, the shop server 2 transmits and receives data to and from respectivegaming machines 1 installed in respective amusement shops A and B,executes transmission (download) of application data to respectivegaming machines 1, and relays data transmission and reception betweenrespective gaming machines 1 or to and from the center server group 5.Included in the application data are various data (such as image datafor the game) to be used in execution of the labyrinth competition gameplayed on the gaming machine 1, as well as board data (configurationprograms for associating the operation buttons provided in the operationunit 19 with the labyrinth competition game).

The card vending machine 6 includes an operation unit by which theplayer performs input operation of his/her private information and acard issuing unit, wherein a predefined input operation using theoperation unit causes the card issuing unit to issue an ID card 17storing card information including the player ID (player information)specific to each player.

The in-shop router 7 connects the in-shop LAN formed in each of theamusement shops A and B to the LAN formed within the center server group5 via the communication network 4 a and the Internet 4.

(Arrangement of Center Server Group)

The center server group 5 includes a plurality of gaming servers (inFIG. 1, two gaming servers 101 and 102) installed corresponding torespective games, and a database server 103, wherein respective gamingservers are connected via a private line 104 to form the LAN, the LANbeing connected to the Internet 4 via a router, which is not shown.

The gaming server 101, installed for executing the labyrinth competitiongame, includes a CPU 301 (processor), a ROM 302, a RAM 303, acommunication processing unit 304, a communication control unit 305, anda data storage unit 306, as shown in FIG. 7. While the CPU 301 operatesto read and write data from and to the RAM 303 according to the programstored in the ROM 302, the communication control unit 305 activates thecommunication processing unit 304, following the instructions from theCPU 301.

The gaming server 101 transmits and receives data to and from respectiveshop servers 2 via the Internet 4. Then, the gaming server 101 receivesentry data (described below) which is transmitted from respective gamingmachines 1, accepts the player's participation (entry) to the labyrinthcompetition game, updates the player's participation information,determines the opponent player, and transmits the result to the databaseserver 103.

The gaming server 102 is installed in order to execute another game andhas an arrangement identical to that of the gaming server 101, althoughthe data and the program stored are different.

The database server 103, being the gaming server according to thepresent invention, includes a CPU 401 (processor), a ROM 402, a RAM 403,a communication processing unit 404, a communication control unit 405,and a data storage unit 406. In the database server 103, while the CPU401 operates to read and write data from and to the RAM 403 according tothe program stored in the ROM 402, the communication control unit 405activates the communication processing unit 404, following theinstructions from the CPU 401, to transmit and receive data to and fromrespective shop servers 2 via the Internet 4. In the data storage unit406, game data, a player ID, a password to be used for playerauthentication, the type of game are stored.

The game data includes data indicating properties specific to eachcharacter (costume and costume color of respective characters, characterability values including viability, magical power, offensive power,defensive power against physical offensive, magical offensive power,magical defensive power, target area, special ability, informationindicating the items equipped by the character and their effect, whichare referred to as “figure information” in the following) for aplurality of the characters appearing in the labyrinth competition game,and data indicating each player's history of playing the labyrinthcompetition game. The game data is transmitted from the database server103 to the gaming machine 1 to be used in the labyrinth competitiongame. Here the above-mentioned figure information corresponds to thecharacter property data according to the present invention.

The player ID is read from the ID card 17 and transmitted by the gamingmachine 1. In addition, as will be described below, upon setting theFIG. 40, which will be used by the player, on the authentication unit 15in the gaming machine 1 and causing the authentication unit 15 to readthe FIG. 40 by each player, a figure ID corresponding to the FIG. 40which has been read is transmitted from the gaming machine 1 to thedatabase server 103. Within the database server 103, a figure managementfile 60 which can store a plurality of figure IDs in association with asingle player ID transmitted from the gaming machine 1 is formed in thedata storage 406. Additionally, the player ID and the figure ID togetherwith associated figure information of each character corresponding toboth IDs are stored being associated with each other in the figuremanagement file 60. Respective characters may be provided with specificproperties based on the figure information, and even characters whichare seemingly identical on the screen may have different abilitiesaccording to the figure information, leading to different properties.Thus only the player (player ID) associated by the figure managementfile 60 is allowed to play the labyrinth competition game using specificcharacters which use the figure information. Here, in the presentembodiment, respective records composing the figure management file 60correspond to the character information in the present invention, andthe data storage 406 corresponds to the storage device in the presentinvention.

Now, FIG. 8 (A) is a diagram illustrating an exemplary figure managementfile 60, showing a record 61 in which the player ID and the figure IDcorrespond to “0001” and “1000”, respectively, and a record 62 in whichthe player ID and the figure ID correspond to “0012” and “1101”respectively. Each record of the figure management file 60 has an IDmanagement area 60A and a character management area 60B. In the IDmanagement area 60A are provided a player ID 60 a and a figure ID 60 b,both of which specify a player who is allowed to use the characterproperty data. In addition, the character management area 60B has thefigure type 60 c and entities specific to respective characters such asviability 60 d, magical power 60 e, offensive power 60 f, defensivepower against physical offensive 60 g, magical offensive power 60 h, andmagical defensive power 60 l which are set therein.

The player ID 60 a and the figure ID 60 b are entities to be used asindices for respective records stored in the figure management file 60,and four digits corresponding to the player ID and respective figure IDsare stored. The figure type 60 c is an entity indicating the attributeof the figure, which is generally classified into “player” and “item”.Among them, a “player” shown in FIG. 8 denotes a figure corresponding toa play character which moves according to the player's operation,whereas an “item” (not shown) denotes a figure corresponding to anequipment character. On the other hand, entities such as the viability60 d and the magical power 60 e numerically indicate the ability of acharacter, where the magnitude of the numeral corresponds to the levelof respective abilities. In addition, although not shown, other entitiescomposing the figure information such as costume and costume color ofeach character, for example, are also stored in association with theplayer ID and respective figure IDs.

FIG. 8(B) and FIGS. 9(A) and 9(B) illustrate the figure management file60 after invalidation has been processed. Details of the invalidationprocess will be described below.

(Structure of Figure)

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a structure of theFIG. 40. The FIG. 40 comprises a base portion 41 and a figure body 42expressing the three-dimensional shape of each character which willappear in the labyrinth competition game.

The base portion 41 has a size corresponding to the depression of themounting portion 15 a and is formed into a hollow, thick-walled diskshape. The base portion 41 is arranged to have a bottomed, cylindricaloperation table main body 43 having a ceiling 43 a, and an IC chip 44,with the IC chip 44 fitted and secured in an open end of the operationtable main body 43. In addition, approximately at the center of theceiling 43 a of the operation table main body 43 is provided aprotrusion 43 b. The IC chip 44 stores a figure ID specific to thecharacter corresponding to the figure body 42. In the presentembodiment, the figure ID is equivalent to the identificationinformation for identifying respective characters.

The figure body 42 includes a leveling pad 46 having a depression 46 acorresponding to the protrusion 43 b, and a bipedal doll 47 formed tostand erect on the leveling pad 46 to model each of the characters whichwill appear in the labyrinth competition game, with the protrusion 43 bfitted into the depression 46 a and secured to the ceiling 43 a of thebase portion 41. Here, the FIG. 40 is received within a capsule (notshown) having a diameter of about 7 cm for sale on a vending machinesimilar to the card vending machine 6. Since a small portion of eachcapsule includes a monster figure, there may be the case in which themonster figure is available when using the FIG. 40 (“figure-existent”mode described below). In addition, characters of the same type mayexpress their individuality of the characters by delicatelydifferentiating the color, or altering the figure information which willbe described below, whereby stirring up the player's willingness forcollection.

The FIG. 40 can be distinguished by the player based on the shape of thefigure body 42, and can be distinguished by the gaming machine 1 basedon the figure ID. The figure ID is unique (specific) among differentFIG. 40, and duplicate registration of identical figures is prohibitedin the gaming system 100.

(Operation of Gaming Machine)

Operation of the gaming machine 1 having the above-mentioned arrangementwill be described next, referring to the flow charts shown in FIGS. 11to 20. In the following discussion, an exemplary case will be describedin which respective players operate four out of the eight gamingmachines 1 installed in the amusement shop A to play the same labyrinthcompetition game.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart illustrating an operation procedure of the gameprocess from start to end of the game in the gaming machine 1. Note thatthe steps are abbreviated as S in FIG. 11, as well as in FIGS. 12 to 20which will be described below. In the following discussion, one of thegaming machines 1 operated by four players will be described as anexample.

When powered on, the gaming machine 1 transmits (step 100 describedbelow) a download request of application data to the shop server 2,which, upon receiving the download request, transmits the applicationdata to the gaming machine 1 which has transmitted the download request.

Upon receiving the application data, the gaming machine 1 stores theapplication data in the RAM 33. Then, in the gaming machine 1, the mainCPU 32, upon reading the application data, controls the progress of thelabyrinth competition game according to the player's input operation.Respective gaming machines 1 are configured to display game images onthe main display 11 while synchronizing with each other via the shopserver 2 and the center server group 5. Here, in the present embodiment,the main CPU 32 operates as the game progress control device in the gameprocess.

Upon starting the game, the process flow in each gaming machine 1proceeds to step 1 and executes the game startup process describedbelow, which includes dropping of a coin, insertion of an ID card, inputof a password, and generation of a character. In step 2, it isdetermined, from the result of the game startup process, whether or notpredefined data has been set (already set) in the with-figure flagdescribed below. Depending on the determination result, the process flowbranches to step 3 or 4 to execute either one of the processes (step 3if the with-figure flag has been set, otherwise step 4), after which theprocess flow may proceed to step 5 subsequent to step 3 to clear thewith-figure flag, or to step 6 subsequent to step 4 to display theresult of the game (result of competition) such as competition scores,then proceed to step 7 to execute post-process in which data indicatingthe result of competition as well as loser information described beloware transmitted to the database server 103 via the shop server 2.

As described above, gaming machine 1 is configured to be able to executethe labyrinth competition game in either a with-figure mode or awithout-figure mode. However, with the with-figure mode, the game isrendered to be more advantageous for the player than with thewithout-figure mode (which will be described in detail below).

(Game Startup Process)

The game startup process of step 1 is executed in accordance with theflow chart shown in FIG. 12. FIGS. 12, 13 and 14 are flow chartsillustrating operation procedures of the game startup process, thepost-process, and the character generation process, respectively.

Upon starting the game startup process, the process flow in the main CPU32 proceeds to step 11 and executes a message output process to instructthe image control circuit 71 to display predefined messages (requests todrop a coin, insert the ID card, and enter the password) on the maindisplay 11.

Next, in step 12, the process flow waits until the player drops a cointo start the game from the coin slot 6, inserts the ID card 17 into thecard slot 18, and inputs the password using the operation unit 19. Whena coin is dropped, a detection signal of the dropped coin is fed intothe main CPU 32 from the coin sensor 16 a, and card information storedin an ID card 17 is input from the card reader 18 a when the ID card 17is inserted into the card slot 18. Furthermore, a password is enteredfrom the operation unit 19. Upon completing all these inputs, theprocess flow proceeds to step 13 and the main CPU 32 instructs thecommunication control unit 21 to control the communication processingunit 22 to transmit the read-out card information and the enteredpassword to the shop server 2.

In the subsequent step 14, the process flow waits until a responsesignal described below is received from the center server group 5, andupon receiving the response signal, the process flow proceeds to step15. In step 15, an instruction is provided to display a selection screenon the main display 11 for selecting with-figure or without-figure, andfor selecting any of the various selectable characters afterdistinguishing whether or not the figure has been authenticated(registered) from the response signal. In the subsequent step 16, theprocess flow waits until the touch panel 11 a is touched. When touched,the process flow proceeds to step 17 to determine whether or notwith-figure mode has been selected in step 15. Here, the process flowproceeds to step 18 when with-figure mode is selected, otherwise theprocess flow proceeds to step 19. In step 18, a character generationprocess described below is executed, whereas in step 19, charactergeneration instruction (non-figure character generation instruction)data without use of a figure is set in the entry data described below,both of which followed by step 20. Specifically, in step 17, for bothcases, i.e. using a figure for the first time and using a figure whichis different from an existing, already authenticated figure, the processflow proceeds to step 18 and executes the character generation processwhen the player selects the with-figure mode. In addition, the playerselects the without-figure mode when a figure is not used from thebeginning, or an existing, already authenticated figure is not used,then the process flow proceeds to step 19.

Then, when the process flow proceeds to step 18, the main CPU 32executes a character generation process in accordance with the flowchart shown in FIG. 14. Upon starting this process, the process flowproceeds to step 31 and a setting request message output process of theFIG. 40 is executed. Here, the main CPU 32 instructs the image controlcircuit 71 to display, on the main display 11, a setting request messageto attach the FIG. 40 to the authentication unit 15 and read the FIGUREID (e.g., “set the operation table of your figure to the authenticationunit on the control panel. The authentication unit lights up whenstarting authentication of your figure. Do not detach your figure untilthe light turns off.”) In the subsequent step 32, the process flow waitsuntil the reading of figure ID is completed. When the player sets theFIG. 40 on the authentication unit 15, following the displayed message,the authentication unit 15 reads the figure ID stored in the IC chip 44of the FIG. 40 and feed it to the main CPU 32. Then, the process flowproceeds to step 33 where the main CPU 32 sets the character generationinstruction data including the figure ID which has been read into theentry data.

In the subsequent step 34, predefined data (“1” for the presentembodiment) is set in the with-figure flag indicating that the readingof figure ID (setting of the figure) of the FIG. 40 by theauthentication unit 15 is performed, and upon execution of step 34 thecharacter generation process is completed.

Returning to FIG. 12, when the process flow proceeds to step 20, themain CPU 32 instructs the communication control unit 21 to control thecommunication processing unit 22 to transmit the entry data to the shopserver 2. When step 20 is finished, the game start-up process iscompleted.

Then, the post-process is executed in accordance with the flow chartshown in FIG. 13. Upon starting the post-process, the process flow inthe main CPU 32 proceeds to step 41 where the main CPU 32, operating asthe specifying device, executes a specifying process for specifying thecharacter which has become the loser (loser character) in the charactercompetition game already executed. In the case of the presentembodiment, as stated above, since the character which has no point(life) left (now zero) becomes the loser character, a character with azero life is specified as the loser character, referring to the life ofrespective characters having competed in the character competition game.Next, the process flow proceeds to step 42 where the main CPU 32instructs the communication control unit 21 to control the communicationprocessing unit 22 to execute control such that the communicationprocessing unit 22 transmits, to the database server 103, dataindicating the result of competition as well as loser informationindicating the loser character specified in step 41 (at least player IDand figure ID are included in the loser information, as well as loserinformation flag indicating the information being the loserinformation). When step 42 is executed, the post-process is completed.

When the setting of the FIG. 40 is executed in the character generationprocess, predefined data is set in the with-figure flag. Upon executionof the setting of the FIG. 40, entry data including character generationindication data is transmitted to the database server 103 via the shopserver 2. In the database server 103, the figure ID is stored in thefigure management file 60 in association with the player ID specific tothe player who performed the setting. The figure ID is used fordetermining whether or not the figure is already authenticated. Inaddition, since the result of determining whether or not the figure isalready authenticated according to the figure management file 60 istransmitted from the database server 103 as a response signal, theplayer can select a character corresponding to the authenticated figureto perform the labyrinth competition game. However, since thewith-figure flag will not be set unless setting of the figure isexecuted, it is necessary to set the FIG. 40 to the authentication unit15 and execute the reading of figure ID in order to play the labyrinthcompetition game in the with-figure mode, even if the figure is alreadyauthenticated. Then, upon execution of the setting, figure informationcorresponding to the read-out figure ID is generated in the databaseserver 103, whereby the labyrinth competition game can be played withouthaving to execute the setting of the FIG. 40 repeatedly.

On the other hand, in the gaming machine 1, the shop server 2 and thecenter server group 5, processes are executed in the order shown in FIG.15 in accordance with the above-mentioned process. FIG. 15 is a sequencechart illustrating an operation sequence executed among the gamingmachine 1, the shop server 2, and the center server group 5.

In step 100, the gaming machine 1 transmits a download request to theshop server 2, then, after downloading application data from the shopserver 2 in step 200, transmits card information etc. in step 13 asstated above. Then, in the center server group 5, the process flowproceeds to step 301, where the CPU 401 of the database server 103executes, referring to the figure management file 60, an authenticationprocess to judge whether or not the player and the figure areregistered, using the card information and password transmitted from thegaming machine 1. When they are already registered, they are judged tobe already authenticated and the process flow proceeds to step 302,where a response signal indicating the result of authentication istransmitted to the gaming machine 1. In this case, the database server103 executes a similar authentication process to the gaming machines 1,eight of which being installed in each of shops A and B.

In addition, the gaming machine 1 transmits the entry data shown in theabove-mentioned step 20 (see FIG. 12). Then, in the center server group5, the process flow proceeds to step 303, where the gaming server 101accepts entry of the player using the entry data from respective gamingmachines 1. Furthermore, in the subsequent step 304, updating ofplayer's participation information, registration or updating of figuresin the figure management file 60, and generation or updating of figureinformation are executed, using the figure ID (this figure ID includesboth the figure ID of an unauthenticated, newly-registered figure, andthe figure ID of an already-authenticated figure to be re-authenticated)which corresponds to character generation indication data, then players(four for the present embodiment) to be the opponent are determined inthe subsequent step 305. Here, registration or updating of figures inthe figure management file 60 is executed by addition of records storedin the figure management file 60 in association with the player ID andthe figure ID, or by updating the records accompanied with modificationof their content.

Additionally, in step 306, the database server 103 extracts game data ofeach player to be the opponent, and transmits the extracted game data tothe shop server 2 in step 307. Upon receiving the game data, the shopserver 2 transmits it to each of the gaming machines 1.

Furthermore, when the communication processing unit 404 receives data ofthe loser information etc. transmitted from the gaming machine 1, thedatabase server 103 executes an invalidation process in step 308.

In the database server 103, the CPU 401 executes an invalidationprocess. Upon starting the invalidation process, the process flow in theCPU 401 proceeds to step 310 as shown in FIG. 20 and determines whetheror not loser information has been entered from the communicationprocessing unit 404. When the loser information has been entered, theprocess flow proceeds to step 311, otherwise the invalidation process iscompleted without executing step 311. In step 311, the CPU 401 operatesas the invalidation process device and deletes the character informationcorresponding to the loser information. In other words, the CPU 401accesses the data storage 406 and deletes the record corresponding tothe loser information from the records composing the figure managementfile 60.

For example, in the case where records 61 and 62 are included in thefigure management file 60 as stated above, if the record correspondingto the loser information is record 62, the record 62 is deleted from thefigure management file 60 as shown in FIG. 8 (B).

Here, when the player intends to play the labyrinth competition game inthe with-figure mode, it is necessary to set the FIG. 40 in the gamingmachine 1 and generate a record corresponding to the set figure in thefigure management file 60, or use a record which is already generated inthe figure management file 60.

However, deleting the record 62 as stated above makes the playerspecified by the record 62 unable to play the labyrinth competition gamein the with-figure mode using the specified figure, thus even if a realFIG. 40 (figure ID “1101”) corresponding to the record 62 exists and theplayer attempts to play the labyrinth competition game in thewith-figure mode, the FIG. 40 is invalidated such that it can not beused in the labyrinth competition game. In other words, if a player runsout of his/her “life” in the labyrinth competition game and becomes theloser, the figure being used by the player is invalidated at the timewhen the player becomes the loser. Since the FIG. 40 is amaterialization of the character appearing in the labyrinth competitiongame so that the player may touch and feel, the more the figure is usedin the labyrinth competition game, the deeper the player is expected tofeel affinity and intimacy. Therefore, invalidation of the FIG. 40merely by losing the labyrinth competition game would motivate theplayer to play the labyrinth competition game with an awareness ofwinning or losing i.e. the most primary result, among others, in acompetition game. In such a manner, the gaming machine 1 is designed tobring a sense of tension into the labyrinth competition game to enhancethe excitement thereof.

Then, in step 311, although the CPU 401 operates as the invalidationprocess device and deletes the character information corresponding tothe loser information, the CPU 401 may simply initialize the characterproperty data of the record corresponding to the loser information, forexample, since it suffices that the FIG. 40 corresponding to the loserinformation becomes unavailable (invalid). In this case, initializationof the character property data for record 62 resets the items fromviability 60 d to magical defensive power 60 l to “0”, respectively, asshown in FIG. 9 (A), since the numerical values preliminarily set areinitialized. Also, a flag area 60C for setting a flag to indicatewhether the record is invalid or valid may be provided in addition tothe ID management area 60A and the character management area 60B, asshown in FIG. 9 (B), so that an invalidation flag (“9” for the presentembodiment) may be set to the flag area 60C of the record correspondingto the loser information (“0” indicates that the record is valid) byprocessing of the CPU 401. In this case, however, the CPU 401 must beconfigured to skip the records having invalidation flag of “9” whenreading records from the figure management file 60.

Although the invalidation process of the figure is executed in thedatabase server 103 in the above description, it can also be executed onthe gaming machine 1. When executing an invalidation process of thefigure on the gaming machine 1, it can be executed as a post-process inaccordance with the flow chart shown in FIG. 25, for example.

Then, upon starting the post-process, the process flow in the main CPU32 likewise executes step 41 as stated above to specify the losercharacter, after which the process flow proceeds to step 43 anddetermines whether or not the FIG. 40 is already set to theauthentication unit 15. Here, when the FIG. 40 is not attached, theprocess flow proceeds to step 44, executes steps 44 and 45, and proceedsto step 46. Otherwise, the process flow proceeds to step 46 withoutexecuting steps 44 and 45. In step 44, the main CPU 32 instructs theimage control circuit 71 to display a figure setting request message onthe main display 11 (setting request of the figure which is the targetof the invalidation process), then, in the subsequent step 45 theprocess flow in the main CPU 32 returns to step 44 if the FIG. 40 is notset to the authentication unit 15, otherwise the process flow proceedsto step 46. In step 46, the main CPU 32, operating as the invalidationprocess device, instructs the IC chip reader/writer being theread-and-write device to erase the figure ID stored in the IC chip 44 ofthe FIG. 40 being set.

Thus, since the figure ID stored in the IC chip 44 of the FIG. 40 iserased if invalidation process is executed by the gaming machine 1, theFIG. 40 is invalidated, whereby bringing about a similar effect asstated above.

(With-Figure Game Process)

The gaming machine 1 executes a with-figure game process and awithout-figure game process in accordance with the flow charts shown inFIGS. 16 and 17, respectively. FIGS. 16 and 17 are flow chartsillustrating a game process in the with-figure mode (with-figure gameprocess) and a game process in the without-figure mode (without-figuregame process), respectively,

Upon starting the with-figure game process, the process flow in thegaming machine 1 proceeds to step 50 shown in FIG. 16 and waits untilgame data is received from the shop server 2. When the game data isreceived, the data is temporarily stored in the RAM 33, after which theprocess flow proceeds to step 51 where the main CPU 32 extracts figureinformation corresponding to the figure ID of the FIG. 40 to be used bythe player. In this manner, the game process in the with-figure mode isarranged to be executed using the extracted figure information.Subsequently, the process flow proceeds to step 52 and executes aselection process of costume, dungeon or the like.

Here, the main CPU 32 sets, on the main display 11, a wider selectionrange of the following entities than with the without-figure gameprocess. In this case, a selection screen (not shown) is displayed onthe main display 11, allowing the player to select the followingentities. Namely, the player is allowed to select a character attribute(the costume worn by the character for the present embodiment)corresponding to the FIG. 40 which is newly set and authenticated (oralready authenticated), and a dungeon to be used in the labyrinthcompetition game.

When the player touches the main display 11 with his/her finger andselects the desired costume and dungeon, information which indicates theselection is fed to the main CPU 32 from the touch panel 11 a. Sincestep 52 is a process in the with-figure mode, selection of the costumecan be made from a plurality (e.g., three) of types whereas the dungeoncan be selected from two types, i.e. a normal configuration and aspecial configuration. On the contrary, with the without-figure gameprocess, there is no process corresponding to step 52, thus a defaultcostume for each of the characters is the only choice allowed for theformer and the normal configuration being the only choice allowed forthe latter.

Subsequently, the process flow proceeds to step 53 and executes theright holder setup process. Here, one of the players (four players forthe present embodiment) participating in the labyrinth competition gameis designated as the player (displacement right holder) who can performdisplacement of the labyrinth, which will be described below. Each ofthe players will be designated as the displacement right holder in turn.

In the subsequent step 54, the displacement phase process is executed.The displacement phase process is executed in accordance with the flowchart shown in FIG. 18. Upon starting the displacement phase process,the process flow in the main CPU 32 proceeds to step 71 and instructsthe image control circuit 71 to display a labyrinth image 150 on themain display 11, as shown in FIG. 21. The labyrinth image 150 has aright holder display region (Players 1, 2, 3 and 4) 150 a for displayingthe existence or nonexistence of the displacement right of the fourplayers or the priority of offensive, and a labyrinth display region 150b for displaying images of the labyrinth composed of a plurality of wallpieces, with images of a plurality of characters 151 (gaming body imagesfor the present embodiment) being displayed inside the labyrinth.Additionally, the labyrinth image 150 also has a timer display region150 c including, as an input prompting image, a display of the remainingtime calculated from the setup time and a first elapsed time describedbelow for prompting the player to perform input operations, as well as alife display region 50 d and an explanation display region 150 e forexplaining how to move the wall pieces. The timer display region 150 cis displayed by the main CPU 32 operating as the display control deviceon the main display 11, wherein the numerical value being displayeddecreases as the first elapsed time increases.

Next, the process flow proceeds to step 72, where the main CPU 32,operating as the timer, starts measuring the first elapsed time. Thefirst elapsed time indicates the elapsed time from the time (input starttime) at which the operation input (progressing operation input ordetermination input) is enabled, indicating determination of the wallpiece (displacement wall piece) to be the target whose position will bemoved on the screen by the player, to the time at which the playertouches the desired arrow “a” to perform the progressing operation inputor determination input. In the subsequent step 73, the main CPU 32determines whether or not determination of the wall piece has beenexecuted, and the process flow proceeds to step 74 when the displacementwall piece has been determined, otherwise the process flow proceeds tostep 77. In step 74, the main CPU 32, operating as a determinationdevice, determines whether or not the first elapsed time is equal to orless than the first setup time (10 seconds for the present embodiment),and the process flow proceeds to step 75 if the first elapsed time iswithin the first setup time, otherwise the process flow proceeds to step76 without executing step 75. In step 75, the main CPU 32, operating asan award providing device, adds “1” to the numerical value of thedefensive power. The award is advantageous for the player in playing thelabyrinth competition game because the larger the numerical value of thedefensive power is, the more strengthened the defensive power becomesagainst the offensive from other characters. In the subsequent step 76,the main CPU 32, operating as an action determination device, sets thedetermined wall piece as the displacement wall piece and determines theaction (displace the wall) of the character.

On the other hand, when the process flow proceeds from step 73 to step77, it is determined whether or not the first elapsed time is within atime limit (15 seconds for the present embodiment) of displacementdetermination. The process flow returns to step 73 if the first elapsedtime is within the time limit of displacement determination, otherwisethe process flow proceeds to step 78 and randomly sets one of the wallpieces as the displacement wall piece, by using a random numberextracted from a sampling circuit 36. Then, upon displaying thelabyrinth image after displacement in step 79, the displacement phaseprocess is completed. In this manner, although determination of thedisplacement wall piece is allowed to be executed within a time limit(15 seconds) of displacement determination, if the determination is doneearlier (within 10 seconds) than the time limit, “1” is added to thenumerical value of the defensive power, providing the player with anaward.

Subsequently, the process flow proceeds to step 55 and a traveling phaseprocess is executed. The traveling phase process is executed inaccordance with the flow chart shown in FIG. 19.

Upon starting the traveling phase process, the process flow in the mainCPU 32 proceeds to step 81 and instructs the image control circuit 71 todisplay a labyrinth image 160 of the traveling phase as shown in FIG. 22on the main display 11. The labyrinth image 160 has respective displayregions (right holder display region 160 a, labyrinth display region 160b, timer display region 160 c, and life display region 160 d) as withthe labyrinth image 150, and further has a destination assignmentdisplay region 160 e including a character 161 provided inside thelabyrinth and displaying a destination assignment request message and adestination determining button.

Next, the process flow proceeds to step 82, where the main CPU 32,operating as the timing device, starts measuring a second elapsed time.The second elapsed time indicates the elapsed time from the time (inputstart time) at which the operation input (assignment of destination) isenabled for assigning, by the player, the destination of the player'scharacter, to the time at which the player touches the destinationassignment display region 160 e to perform the operation input(progressing operation input or determination input). In the subsequentstep 83, the main CPU 32 determines whether or not assignment ofdestination has been executed, and the process flow proceeds to step 84if the destination has been assigned, otherwise the process flowproceeds to step 88. In step 84, an image (not shown) is displayed withthe changed display color of the floor surface from the character'slocation to its destination and with the destination clearly defined,after which the process flow proceeds to step 85. Then it is determinedwhether or not the player touched the determination button of thedestination assignment display region 160 e (to determine thedestination), and the process flow proceeds to step 86 when touched,otherwise the process flow proceeds to step 88. In step 86, the main CPU32, operating as a determination device, determines whether or not thesecond elapsed time is equal to or less than the second setup time (15seconds for the present embodiment). Here, the process flow proceeds tostep 87 when the second elapsed time is within the second setup time,otherwise the process flow proceeds to step 89 without executing step87. In step 87, the main CPU 32, operating as an award providing device,adds “1” to the numerical value of the offensive power. The award isalso advantageous for the player in playing the labyrinth competitiongame because the larger the numerical value of the offensive power is,the more strengthened the offensive power becomes.

On the other hand, when the process flow proceeds to step 88, it isdetermined whether or not the second elapsed time is within a time limit(30 seconds for the present embodiment) of destination determination.The process flow returns to step 83 when the second elapsed time iswithin the time limit of destination determination, otherwise theprocess flow completes the traveling phase process (in this case, thecharacter stands by at its original location without moving). In step89, the main CPU 32, operating as an action determination device,determines the action (traveling in the labyrinth) of the characteraccording to the determinations in the preceding steps and displays theimage to which character has been moved. Then, the traveling phaseprocess is completed. In this manner, although determination of thedestination is allowed to be executed within a time limit (30 seconds)of destination determination, if the determination is done earlier(within 15 seconds) than the time limit, “1” is added to the numericalvalue of the offensive power, providing the player with an award. Here,with the traveling phase process in the with-figure mode, a special card(teleport card allowing random movement or wall penetrating cardallowing penetration through the wall) is available as a reward which isunavailable in the without-figure mode.

Now, returning to FIG. 17, when the process flow proceeds to step 56following the traveling phase process, the main CPU 32 determineswhether or not a battle has occurred. Here, the process flow proceeds tostep 57 if a battle has occurred (the case in which a plurality ofcharacters exists within a target range in the labyrinth), otherwise theprocess flow proceeds to step 60.

In step 57 a battle selection phase process is executed. Here, the mainCPU 32 instructs the image control circuit 71 to display a battleselection image 170 (having a right holder display region 170 a, with acharacter provided inside the labyrinth) on the main display 11, asshown in FIG. 23. Each of the players (four, for the present embodiment)selects an opponent to attack, referring to the battle selection image170, and selects use or non-use of a skill card indicating the skill ofthe character, and selects the skill card to be used. Incidentally, theorder of offensive by respective characters is based on the displacementright holder.

In the battle selection phase process, a skill card can be selected(skill cards are provided to the character as a reward according to winsand losses at the end of the game). There are more types of skill cardsprovided, and more types of selectable cards in the with-figure modethan in the without-figure mode. In addition, the probability ofproviding a rare card which brings about useful award information (e.g.,showing special skills) is higher than the without-figure mode. In otherwords, if the player plays the game in the with-figure mode using theFIG. 40, many skill cards including a rare card is provided, increasingthe probability that the cards can be used.

In this case, the main CPU 32 searches a skill selection table (e.g., atable associated with random numbers and skill cards to be selected) forthe first mode. Comparison of the skill selection tables for the firstand the second modes shows that the range of random numberscorresponding to rare cards is set wider for the former than for thelatter.

In the subsequent step 58, a competition process is executed. In otherwords, since respective characters have their offensive power anddefensive power specified based on the figure information as well astarget area thereof being set, wins or losses of respective charactersare decided by comparing the numerical values of the offensive power andthe numerical values of defensive power of characters competing witheach other, taking into account whether or not skill cards are used. Inthis case, a competition image 180 showing how characters 181 a and 181b are competing with each other is displayed on the sub-display 12, asshown in FIG. 24.

Then, in step 59, a battle completion process and a point calculationprocess are executed. Here, life is added or subtracted depending on theresult of the competition process of step 58 (type of the opponentcharacter, and winning or losing), and the characters are provided withor deprived of titles or jewels (in the with-figure mode, variousdegrees such as “Champion”, “Dominator”, “Master”, or the like are givenaccording to the performance the characters). In the subsequent step 60,it is determined whether or not a completion condition is satisfied. Ifthe completion conditions are satisfied (remaining points are equal toor lower than zero), the “figure-existent”, and game process iscompleted, otherwise (remaining points >0) the process flow returns tostep 53 and the above-mentioned process is repeated. For the player withthe remaining points equal to or lower than zero the labyrinthcompetition game is completed, and the main CPU 32 substitutes byparticipating as another character. Here, although not shown, the playerwho has run out of his/her life can recover his/her life to a certainextent by using a recovery card or dropping a coin.

As stated above, the gaming machine 1 is configured such that, for boththe displacement phase process and the traveling phase process, if thedisplacement wall piece and the destination are determined within apredefined time, the numerical values of their defensive power and thenumerical values of their offensive power are respectively addedresulting in strengthened defensive power and offensive power.Furthermore, the progress of the labyrinth competition game iscontrolled in such a manner that winning or losing of a character isdetermined using these parameters when respective characters competewith each other. Therefore, addition of numerical values of thedefensive power and the offensive power works as an incentive forletting each player promptly determine the displacement wall piece andits destination. This can prevent the player from needlessly delayinghis/her operation input and prompt faster operation input, whereby theentire progression of the game can be hastened.

In addition, in each of the displacement phase process and the travelingphase process timer display regions 150 c and 160 c are displayed, bothdecrementing the numerals as time passes from the start of measurementof the elapsed time, whereby the player can be prompted to performhis/her operation input as soon as possible.

Particularly, for types of games in which a plurality of playersparticipate as with the gaming machine 1, since delay in the operationof one player keeps the other players waiting, they may feel stress andfrustration. With the gaming machine 1, however, the risk has beeneliminated and each player can enjoy the amusement intrinsic to the gamewhich should be provided by the labyrinth competition game.

(Without-Figure Game Process)

In without-figure game process, the processes are executed in accordancewith a flow chart shown in FIG. 16, which is approximately similar tothat of the with-figure game process. The without-figure game process isdifferent from the with-figure game process in that step 52 does notexist.

In the without-figure mode, although the game progresses without using afigure, if, upon receiving game data and storing them in the RAM 33, afigure ID is included in the response signal (if an alreadyauthenticated figure exists), the figure information corresponding tothe figure ID is extracted.

In addition, since step 52 is not executed, there is no room forselecting a costume or a dungeon unlike the with-figure mode, as statedabove, accordingly the game content is limited compared with thelabyrinth competition game in the with-figure mode. Furthermore, theselection ranges for various cards selectable in step 55 and for skillcards selectable in step 57 are limited.

Then, in step 59, although the characters are provided with titlesaccording to their result of competition, the without-figure mode islimited such that only the title “Wanderer” is provided howeverexcellent the result of competition may be.

In this manner, with gaming machine 1, the game can be executed not onlywhen using the FIG. 40 but also when not using the FIG. 40. In addition,since use of the FIG. 40 may lead to a benefit which cannot be obtainedwhen the FIG. 40 is not used, the player's willingness for collectionmay be stirred up, whereby amusement taking advantage of characteristicsintrinsic to the labyrinth competition game can be provided.Particularly, playing the labyrinth competition game using the FIG. 40may increase the point of the character corresponding to the figure,strengthen the offensive power and the defensive power, or provide atitle, whereby motivating the player to use his/her figure repeatedly,providing the player with satisfaction.

Second Embodiment

(Arrangement of Gaming System)

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.FIG. 26 is a system block diagram of a gaming system 200 according tothe second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 27 is a blockdiagram showing the internal structure of a cellular phone 111 composingthe gaming system 200 together with other major components. The gamingsystem 200, further comprises, in addition to a similar arrangement asthe gaming system 100, a cellular phone 111, a base station 110, and ahome-use gaming machine 112.

The cellular phone 111 has a wireless connection environment to theInternet 4 and is configured to realize a generally similar operation aswith the above-mentioned gaming machine 1, by communicating with thegaming server 101 and the shop server 2 via the base station 110. Inaddition, since the cellular phone 111 has a wireless connectionenvironment to the Internet 4, unlike the gaming machine 1, thelabyrinth competition game can be played at locations other thanamusement shops A and B.

Additionally, the cellular phone 111, which is located within a radiozone covered by the base station 110 installed in a paging area undercontrol of a control station (not shown), composes a mobilecommunication system together with other cellular phones (not shown),and realizes audio communication with each other by executing radiocommunication via the base station 110.

The cellular phone 111 has a CPU 501, a ROM 502, a RAM 503, an operationinput unit 504, and a liquid crystal display unit 505, as shown in FIG.27. In addition, the cellular phone 111 has a data storage unit 506, anaudio conversion processing unit 507, a communication control unit 508,a radio communication unit 509, a speaker 510 and a microphone 511. TheCPU 501 operates according to a program stored in ROM 502 and controlsthe overall operation of the cellular phone 111. The ROM 502 stores aprogram executed by the CPU 501, such as a communication controlprogram, for example, to cause the cellular phone 111 to execute radiocommunication. The RAM 503 stores a game control program for controllingthe execution of the labyrinth competition game, or data such asabove-mentioned game data required for executing the program by the CPU501.

The operation input unit 504 has a plurality of operation input buttonsand feeds the data entered by input operation of respective operationinput buttons to the CPU 501. For example, the operation input unit 504has a plurality of character input buttons, a send button, a receivebutton, a confirmation button of received mails, a connection button tothe Internet 4, or the like. The liquid crystal display unit 505, havingan LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and its driving unit, is an imagedisplay unit for displaying images such as characters, graphics,symbols, or the like. For example, unit 505 displays the phone number ofthe opposite party when transmitting, current time, reception history,received mails, standby images, as well as images such as game executionscreens when executing various types of games provided from the gamingserver 101.

The data storage unit 506 stores various types of data. Since, unlikethe gaming machine 1, the cellular phone 111 is not provided with theauthentication unit 15, the coin slot 16, and the card slot 18, droppingof a coin, insertion of the ID card 17, and reading the FIG. 40 from theIC chip 44 cannot be performed. Therefore, payment information based ona payment process which is preliminarily performed by the player ismanaged by the gaming server 101 in order to allow playing of thelabyrinth competition game without having to drop a coin, and balanceinformation of the payment information is stored in the data storageunit 506. In addition, the data storage unit 506 stores card informationto be stored in the identification card 17 and information correspondingto the figure which was read using the gaming machine 1 and has actuallybeen used in the labyrinth competition game (corresponding figureinformation). The corresponding figure information includes a figure IDto be stored in the IC chip 44 of the FIG. 40, and figure imageinformation for displaying, on the liquid crystal display unit 505, afigure image showing the FIG. 40 (particularly the doll part 47). Bystoring such information in the data storage unit 506, the cellularphone 111 allows the labyrinth competition game to be played, withouthaving to use the identification card 17 and the FIG. 40 itself, as whenplaying the labyrinth competition game on the gaming machine 1.

Since the corresponding figure information stored in the data storageunit 506 is information corresponding to the figure which has actuallybeen used in the labyrinth competition game, it is necessary to play thelabyrinth competition game once in the amusement shops A or B byauthenticating the FIG. 40 using the gaming machine 1 and, store therequired information in the ID management file of the database server103, in order to play the labyrinth competition game under the samecondition as with the above-mentioned “figure-existent” mode using thecellular phone 111. After having stored the required information in theID management file, it becomes possible to play the labyrinthcompetition game via the cellular phone 111 at locations other than theamusement shops A or B, under the same condition as with the with-figuremode by using the corresponding figure information, without having touse the figure itself. Here, the labyrinth competition game may also beallowed to be played via the cellular phone 111 without having to usethe FIG. 40, by causing the database server 103 to execute a predefinedprocess according to accesses from the cellular phone 111 and store therequired information in the ID management file, without the playerhaving to play the labyrinth competition game by authenticating the FIG.40 on the gaming machine 1.

The audio conversion processing unit 507 converts and compresses analogaudio signal input from the microphone 511 into digital audio data andfeeds it to the radio communication unit 509, while decompressing theaudio data and outputting it to the speaker 510. The communicationcontrol unit 508 receives instructions from the CPU 501 and operates tocontrol connection and disconnection of the channel for communicatingwith the base station 110. The radio communication unit 509 is a unitfor executing radio data transmission and reception, according to thecontrol of the communication control unit 508. In other words, afterhaving converted the information to be transmitted to the base station110 into a signal to be handled in the mobile communication network, theradio communication unit 509 transmits the signal which is superimposedon the radio wave. At the same time it receives radio wave from the basestation 110 and retrieves information from the signal superimposed onthe radio wave. The speaker 510 is an audio outputting device foroutputting conversation of the opposite party of conversation or soundduring execution of the game, whereas the microphone 511 inputs voicesuch as conversation between the users and converts it into electricsignals.

The home-use gaming machine 112 is a dedicated home-use gaming machineowned or borrowed by an individual player equipped with an operatingenvironment connectable to the Internet 4. The home-use gaming machine112 has an arrangement which is generally similar to the gaming machine1 so that it can operate generally in a similar manner as with thegaming machine 1.

(Operation of Gaming System)

Next, the operation of the gaming system 200 will be described focusingmainly on the cellular phone 111. The cellular phone 111 basicallyexecutes the game process in a similar manner as with the gaming machine1. However, the game startup process and the game process are differentsince, unlike the gaming machine 1, the cellular phone 111 is notprovided with the authentication unit 15, the coin slot 16, and the cardslot 18.

In the game startup process, data processing which corresponds todropping of a coin and input of card information is executed in step 12.In addition, since the cellular phone 111 is not provided with the touchpanel 11 a, the process flow waits in step 16 until a button operationusing the operation input unit 504 is executed. Furthermore, differentprocesses are executed also in steps 31 and 32 for generating characters(a message output process of receiving corresponding figure information,and a process of waiting until reception of the corresponding figureinformation is completed will be executed, respectively).

Besides the above processes, the cellular phone 111 executes the gameprocess referring to balance information of payment information, cardinformation, and corresponding figure information which are stored inthe data storage unit 506.

Also in the case when a player playing the labyrinth competition gameusing the cellular phone 111 becomes the loser, an invalidation processis executed in a similar manner as with the case when a player becomesthe loser in the labyrinth competition game using the gaming machine 1.However, since the cellular phone 111 is not provided with theauthentication unit 15, which prevents reading and writing of the figureID, it is impossible to erase the stored FIGURE ID from the IC chip 44of the FIG. 40 attached to the authentication unit 15, as with gamingmachine 1. In addition, since, unlike the gaming machine 1, thelabyrinth competition game is executed using the data corresponding tothe actual FIG. 40, not necessarily requiring the actual FIG. 4, it ismore preferred to execute the invalidation process with the player'sconsent and let the player be aware of being invalidated rather thantransmitting the loser information to the database server 103 in asimilar manner as with the gaming machine 1 and executing theinvalidation process in the database server 103.

Then, the database server 103 may be configured to execute theinvalidation process in accordance with the flow chart shown in FIG. 28,corresponding to the case when the player becomes the loser playing thelabyrinth competition game using the cellular phone 111. Theinvalidation process shown in FIG. 28 is different from the flow chartshown in FIG. 20 in that steps 312 and 313, besides steps 310 and 311are executed.

In the database server 103, upon starting the invalidation process bythe CPU 401, the process flow proceeds to step 310 and determineswhether or not loser information has been input from the communicationprocessing unit 404 in a similar manner as described above. The processflow proceeds to step 312 if the loser information has been input,otherwise the invalidation process is completed without executing steps312, 313 and 311. In step 312, the CPU 401 determines whether or not theloser information has been received from the cellular phone 111, and theprocess flow proceeds to step 313 if it has been received from thecellular phone 111, otherwise the process flow proceeds to step 311without executing 313. In step 313, it is determined whether or notinvalidation permission data has been received, and the process flowproceeds to step 311 if the invalidation permission data has beenreceived, otherwise invalidation process is completed without executingstep 311. In step 311, the CPU 401 operates as the invalidation processdevice in a similar manner as described above, and the characterinformation corresponding to the loser information is deleted. In otherwords, the CPU 401 invalidates when receiving both the loser informationand the invalidation permission data which permit invalidation of theloser character from the gaming machine (that is, cellular phone 111)including the radio communication unit which transmits and receives datavia a radio communication.

On the other hand, in the cellular phone 111, invalidation permissiondata is generated when the player plays the labyrinth competition gameusing the cellular phone 111 and becomes the loser, corresponding to theinvalidation process of FIG. 28, and is transmitted to the databaseserver 103. The invalidation permission data, i.e., the data indicatingto permit invalidation of the loser character is generated by executinga predefined input operation by the player who confirmed theinvalidation, for which a confirmation screen of invalidation of theloser character is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 505 whentransmitting the loser information by the post-process in the cellularphone 111, for example, to let the player be aware of, and clearlyconfirm, the invalidation of the loser character.

Since the invalidation process is also executed in this manner bydeleting the record from the figure management file 60 when the playerplays the labyrinth competition game using the cellular phone 111 andbecomes the loser, the player would be motivated to play the labyrinthcompetition game with an awareness of winning or losing i.e. the mostprimary result, among others, in a competition game. Therefore, a senseof tension can be brought into the labyrinth competition game to enhancethe excitement thereof.

Here, since letting the player be aware of, and clearly confirm, theinvalidation of the loser character in the gaming machine 1 is similarto that in the cellular phone 111, the gaming machine 1 may also beconfigured such that a confirmation screen of invalidation of the losercharacter is displayed on the main display 11 so as to let the player beaware of, and clearly confirm, the invalidation of the loser character,and generate invalidation permission data by performing a predefinedinput operation, that is, touching the touch panel 11 a by the playerwho confirmed the invalidation.

In addition, although the above-mentioned embodiments are described witha figure taken as an example of the target object to be scanned, thepresent invention may be applied for cases using a target object to bescanned other than a figure. For example, card-shaped game cards (alsoreferred to as trading cards) having pictures or symbols drawn thereonand storing ID information therein, or cassettes may be used.Additionally, although the embodiments are described with the gamingmachine 1 which can execute the labyrinth competition game taken as anexample, the present invention may be applied to gaming machines whichcan execute other image games. For example, gaming machines which cansimulate a team play such as baseball or soccer in which a plurality ofplayers appear using figures or cassettes corresponding to respectiveplayers may be used.

In addition, although the gaming machine 1 has a main display 11 and asubstitute display 12 integrated therein for displaying game image, themain display 11 and the substitute display 12 may be separated.

Although the above-mentioned embodiments are described with a casewherein the gaming machine 1 has a specifying device, a read-and-writedevice, a game progress control device, the gaming system (gaming systemin the present invention) may be arranged in such a manner that each ofthe above-mentioned devices or units are provided in either the gamingmachine 1 or the shop server 2. Furthermore, the gaming system may bearranged by providing an apparatus having functionalities similar toeach of the above-mentioned devices or units separately from the gamingmachine 1 and the shop server 2.

As described above in detail, a gaming machine and a gaming server areprovided according to the present invention, which are configured so asto allow competition games with a sense of tension by taking in theprimary result of the competition games such as winning or losing.

The present invention provides a gaming machine for executing charactercompetition in which a plurality of characters compete with each other.The gaming machine comprises: a specifying means for specifying a losercharacter which has become a loser in the character competition; and aninvalidation process means for invalidating the loser characterspecified by the specifying means.

Owing to this, the gaming machine is configured such that a characterwhich has become the loser in the character competition is specified,and the specified loser character is invalidated.

The gaming machine may further comprise a read-and-write means forreading and writing identification information from and to game itemsstoring the identification information for identifying the respectivecharacters, wherein the invalidation process means invalidates the losercharacter by erasing the identification information corresponding to theloser character.

Owing to this, the gaming machine is configured such that the losercharacter is invalidated by erasing, from the game item, theidentification information corresponding to the loser character.

In addition, the present invention provides a gaming server connected tothe gaming machine for executing character competition in which aplurality of characters compete with each other. The gaming servercomprises an invalidation process means for invalidating a losercharacter when receiving loser information indicating the losercharacter which has become a loser in the character competition from thegaming machine.

Owing to this, the gaming server is configured to invalidate the losercharacter corresponding to the loser information when receiving theloser information indicating the character which has become the loser inthe character competition from the gaming machine.

In addition, the gaming server may further comprise a storage means forstoring character information which associates character property dataindicating intrinsic properties of respective characters with playerdata specifying a player allowed to use the character property data,wherein the invalidation process means may invalidate the losercharacter by deleting the character information corresponding to theloser information among the character information stored in the storagemeans.

Owing to this, when receiving the loser information indicating thecharacter which has become the loser in the character competition fromthe gaming machine, the gaming server invalidates the loser character bydeleting the character information corresponding to the loserinformation.

In addition, the gaming server may further comprise a storage means forstoring character information which associates character property dataindicating intrinsic properties of respective characters with playerdata specifying a player allowed to use the character property data,wherein the invalidation process means may invalidate the losercharacter by initializing the character property data associated withthe player data corresponding to the loser information among thecharacter information stored in the storage means.

Owing to this, when receiving loser information indicating the characterwhich has become the loser in the character competition from the gamingmachine, the gaming server invalidates the loser character byinitializing the character property data associated with the player datacorresponding to the loser information.

With each of the above-mentioned gaming servers, the invalidationprocess means may invalidate when receiving both the loser informationand invalidation permission data which permit invalidation of the losercharacter from the gaming machine including a radio communication meanswhich transmits and receives data via a radio communication. Further,the invalidation process means may invalidate the loser character uponreceiving invalidation permission data which permits invalidation of theloser character from the gaming machine, when the loser information isreceived from the gaming machine having a radio communication meanswhich transmits and receives data via a radio communication.

Owing to this, the gaming server is configured to invalidate the losercharacter upon receiving invalidation permission data from the gamingmachine when the loser information is received from the gaming machinehaving a wireless communication means.

1. A gaming machine for executing character competition in which aplurality of characters compete with each other, the gaming machinecomprising: a processor specifying and invalidating a loser characterwhich has become a loser in the character competition.
 2. The gamingmachine according to claim 1, further comprising a read-and-write devicereading and writing identification information from and to game itemsstoring the identification information for identifying the respectivecharacters, wherein the processor invalidates the loser character byerasing the identification information corresponding to the losercharacter.
 3. A gaming server connected to a gaming machine forexecuting character competition in which a plurality of characterscompete with each other, the gaming server comprising: a processorinvalidating a loser character when receiving loser informationindicating the loser character which has become a loser in the charactercompetition from the gaming machine.
 4. The gaming server according toclaim 3, further comprising a storage device storing characterinformation which associates character property data indicatingintrinsic properties of the respective characters with player dataspecifying a player allowed to use the character property data, whereinthe processor invalidates the loser character by deleting the characterinformation corresponding to the loser information among the characterinformation stored in the storage device.
 5. The gaming server accordingto claim 3, further comprising a storage device storing characterinformation which associates character property data indicatingintrinsic properties of the respective characters with player dataspecifying a player allowed to use the character property data, whereinthe processor invalidates the loser character by initializing thecharacter property data associated with the player data corresponding tothe loser information among the character information stored in thestorage device.
 6. The gaming server according to claim 3, wherein theprocessor invalidates the loser character when receiving both the loserinformation and invalidation permission data which permit invalidationof the loser character from the gaming machine including a radiocommunication unit which transmits and receives data via a radiocommunication.
 7. The gaming server according to claim 4, wherein theprocessor invalidates the loser character when receiving both the loserinformation and invalidation permission data which permit invalidationof the loser character from the gaming machine including a radiocommunication unit which transmits and receives data via a radiocommunication.
 8. The gaming server according to claim 5, wherein theprocessor invalidates the loser character when receiving both the loserinformation and invalidation permission data which permit invalidationof the loser character from the gaming machine including a radiocommunication unit which transmits and receives data via a radiocommunication.